Trump accepts ‘milestone’ meeting with Kim

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump are to meet in person by the end of May, it has been announced, an extraordinary overture after months of mutual hostility.

News of the meeting was delivered by South Korean officials after talks with Mr Trump at the White House.

They passed a verbal message from Mr Kim, saying the North Korean leader was “committed to denuclearisation”.

South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in said the news “came like a miracle”.

“If President Trump and Chairman Kim meet following an inter-Korean summit, complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula will be put on the right track in earnest,” he said.

China has welcomed the development, saying the Korean peninsula issue was “heading in the right direction” and calling for “political courage”.

However, correspondents say the North has halted missile and nuclear tests during previous talks, only to resume them when it lost patience or felt it was not getting what it demanded.

The latest announcement came days after the South Korean delegation met Mr Kim in Pyongyang.

Speaking outside the White House after briefing Mr Trump, South Korean National Security Adviser Chung Eui-yong said he had passed on a message that Mr Kim was “committed to denuclearisation” and had “pledged that North Korea will refrain from any further nuclear or missile tests”.

Mr Trump said the development was “great progress” but that sanctions on North Korea would remain in place until a firm agreement was reached.

There is no indication yet of where the Trump-Kim talks might take place, but the Korean border’s demilitarised zone (DMZ) and Beijing are seen as likely options.

Moon’s huge gamble

Analysis by BBC’s Laura Bicker in Seoul

President Moon Jae-in has acknowledged there are obstacles ahead. He is managing expectations and so much can go wrong.

His approval ratings took a hit during the Winter Olympics after he integrated the women’s hockey team with players from the North and met a general from Pyongyang who had been accused of masterminding deadly attacks on South Koreans, though they have since rebounded.

These talks are a huge gamble with a communist state which is hard to read.

But if, just if, he helps pull it off, it may reduce the threat of nuclear war and he could win himself a Nobel Peace prize.

How did we reach this point?

Kim Jong Un talked about denuclearization with the South Korean Representatives, not just a freeze. Also, no missile testing by North Korea during this period of time. Great progress being made but sanctions will remain until an agreement is reached. Meeting being planned!

The BBC’s Laura Bicker in Seoul says it is important to note that North Korea has not yet promised to abandon its nuclear weapons completely. It also remains unclear exactly what it is asking for in return.

But Mr Chung made a point of saying it was Mr Trump’s “maximum pressure policy” which had brought the parties to this point, a gesture which the president is likely to appreciate.

Our correspondent says Kim Jong-un has also scored a propaganda win, first with the Olympics and now by being seen to reach out to the US.

What about the other major players?

President Moon, who is due to meet Mr Kim in April, said the Trump-Kim meeting “will be recorded as a historic milestone that realised peace on the Korean Peninsula”.

Image copyrightAFPImage captionThe heavily guarded DMZ has been the location of landmark talks in the past

The South’s statement also credited “international solidarity” for the breakthrough, probably in part a reference to the ever-increasing international sanctions on North Korea.

China, North Korea’s main economic supporter, has in recent months toughened up its dealings with Pyongyang, including on key areas like petroleum and oil. This is thought to be putting a major strain on the North.

“We’re glad that they have finally made this first step… The next key step is for all parties to maintain this momentum,” Mr Geng said.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the development was a “step in the right direction”.

Japan, which saw North Korean missiles fly over its territory twice last year, responded with cautious optimism.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Japan would “keep putting maximum pressure until North Korea takes concrete actions toward denuclearisation”, and said he hoped to meet Mr Trump ahead of the Kim summit.

Have talks like this happened in the past?

No sitting US president has ever met a North Korean leader, but there have been repeated attempts to get North Korea to denuclearise.

The last major effort – the Six Party talks – collapsed in 2008, largely because North Korea refused to allow inspectors to verify that it had shut down its nuclear programme.

A number of bids to restart the talks also collapsed, including in 2012 when North Korea launched another rocket, two weeks after announcing a “leap day” (29 February) agreement with the US that had promised food aid in return for inspections and a moratorium on missile tests.

About us

The New Crusading GUIDE is a privately own newspaper in Ghana with Mr Abdul Malik Kweku Baako as its Editor-In-Chief. The Deputy Editor-In-Chief is Anas Aremeyaw Anas, the International undercover investigative journalist. We give you the latest news in Ghana and from around the world.
Sign up to our Newsletter and get breaking news directly in your inbox.